VIETNAM DETOX · ALBA WELLNESS VALLEY HUẾ
Yên Retreat
A five-day preventive fasting and hot spring reset at Alba Wellness Valley in Huế.
Loading next retreat date…
For people who carry responsibility for work, team or family and are running on empty behind a steady exterior. Five guided days to rest deeply, reset your system and remember what steady actually feels like.
This retreat is for people who aregood at keeping going.
You manage work, your team, your family, and responsibilities without dropping things. Long working hours have become normal. You show up, deliver, and hold the plates in the air. By any external measure, you are doing fine. And you are tired in a way that a weekend, a diet, a spa break, or another good intention has not been able to touch.
- You carry responsibility for your work, team, or family and rarely make space for your own recovery.
- You have tried diets, spa breaks, or short wellness escapes, but the effect never lasted.
- You want to age well and protect your long-term health before chronic illness becomes your normal.
- You are ready for a structured reset, not another passive holiday.
Five days now is the most efficient thing you can do for the next five years.
What you walk away with is something more durable than relaxation: a lighter body, a quieter mind, and a nervous system that has finally been given the conditions to actually rest.
You might not know the word.But you know the feeling.
Yên (安) is the Vietnamese word for tranquil, serene, at peace. The character is a picture: a roof over a person, shelter not as comfort but as structure. It is the peace that comes when the conditions of your life finally allow you to stop bracing.
Most of us have rest. We have weekends, evenings, the occasional holiday. But rest is not Yên. It is the body and mind returning to a state that is their natural home.
Five days here create the conditions for Yên to return. Not through force or discipline, but through fasting, thermal water, guided support, and the stillness of a river valley away from the city.
Everything still looks normal.Something inside you doesn’t.
You’re still functioning.
You function well. That is part of the problem.
There is no crisis that forces you to stop. Just the competent management of a life that is full in every direction, while something quieter and more essential gets progressively thinner.
Rest isn’t recovery.
You go to bed tired and wake up tired.
Sleep happens, but restoration does not. Weekends pass without leaving much behind.
Even on holiday, you find yourself checking WhatsApp because the habit of being reachable is stronger than the change of scenery.
You disappeared a little.
Inside the competence, something has gone quiet.
You feel disconnected from yourself in a way that is hard to name. You move through your days on autopilot, doing what is required and being what is expected.
Putting yourself last became normal, and you are not quite sure when that happened.
It isn’t motivation.
You already know what you need. You have known for a while.
The moment never arrives. There is always something more urgent, responsible, or justifiable.
The problem is not motivation. It is not having created the conditions.
Why people choose Yên.
The guests who come to Yên are rarely in crisis.
They are the people who watched someone else reach burnout: a colleague, a close friend, or someone who always said they would slow down. They decided not to wait for the same thing to happen.
They come because they understand that five days of genuine rest today can change the next five years.
A valley shaped by hot springs.Thirty kilometres from the world.
Award-winning Alba Wellness Valley sits in Phong Điền district, thirty kilometres from Hue, in a river valley formed by the Thanh Tan mineral springs. Natural thermal water feeds the resort's entire water system, including the Onsen facility at the centre of the retreat's daily rhythm. The green hills and constant birdsong replace the noise of everyday life. There is no city noise.
Travel + Leisure has recognised Alba Wellness Valley as one of Vietnam's Best Upcountry Hotels for three consecutive years, and Luxury Lifestyle Magazine as the No. 2 Best Wellness Resort in the World.
The environment is not an amenity. For the kind of physiological reset that Buchinger fasting creates, where the body is asked to enter a state of deep rest and repair, the setting matters. Green hills, thermal water, birdsong, and the absence of city noise are not luxuries here. They are part of the method.
You can't recover in the same environment thatexhausted you.
You are not ill. You are simply carrying more than your body was ever meant to carry for this long. A weekend helps for a while. A holiday helps a little longer. But before long, the same routines, responsibilities and demands quietly settle back in.
You have known for some time that something needs to change. The problem has never been motivation. It has been finding enough time, enough space, and enough distance from everyday life for that change to actually happen.
Your body has been trying to tell you. Through your energy. Your concentration. The way you recover. The way you feel after eating. The way stress stays with you longer than it used to. These are not failures. They are signals asking for your attention.
That is what Yên is designed to provide.
Not another programme to fit into your schedule, but five protected days completely outside of it. A place where your body can finally stop reacting, start recovering, and remember what feeling well actually feels like.
What it can feel like when your body finally slows down again.
Many guests initially come to lose weight and feel better in their own body. What they often discover is that they are also letting go of accumulated stress, unhealthy routines, mental clutter, and a constant feeling of being 'on'. The changes people describe are often both physical and emotional.
Steadier Energy
Many guests arrive feeling exhausted even after sleeping.
Afternoon crashes, constant tiredness and the feeling of running on empty often begin to soften once the body settles into a calmer rhythm.
Calmer Relationship With Food
Some guests arrive with constant cravings, emotional eating or too many thoughts around food.
As the body slows down and eating becomes simpler, many guests begin to feel more calm and in control around hunger again.
Physical Lightness Again
Many guests arrive feeling heavy, bloated or physically overloaded.
After several days of digestive rest, the body often begins to feel lighter, calmer and less weighed down.
Clearer Thinking
Mental overload often feels like constant thinking, inner noise and difficulty focusing.
When the pace slows down, many guests notice clearer thoughts, calmer focus and more space in their mind again.
Feeling More Like Yourself Again
Some guests arrive disconnected from themselves, emotionally tired or stuck in stress mode.
As the retreat rhythm settles in, many begin to feel calmer, more grounded and more present again.
Many guests do not arrive because something is terribly wrong. They arrive because they no longer feel good in their own body, energy or daily rhythm.
Fasting is not going without.It is being fed differently.
Two freshly pressed vegetable juices and two clear vegetable broths each day. One broth is served warm; on hotter days, the lunchtime serving can be enjoyed cold: a chilled, clear vegetable consommé that is as refreshing as it is nourishing. This is fully aligned with the Buchinger method, which has served cold soups at its clinics for decades.
This is not deprivation. Buchinger fasting maintains caloric intake through juices and broths. This is why guests feel clearer rather than depleted, and why it produces results that other fasting approaches rarely achieve.
The retreat begins with a welcome dinner on the evening of arrival, when you are still nourished and the fast has not yet started.
On departure day, you leave with a juice and a broth for the journey home: your nourishment for the afternoon and evening ahead. The fast continues until you are home.
The first solid food is an apple, eaten slowly, on the day after the retreat. Many guests choose to extend their fast beyond that point. Dieter will support you remotely if you do.
I want to begin my fastEverything supports one direction: returning to Yên.
Five days of carefully sequenced support. Nothing is random. You are guided and supported by a certified Buchinger fasting coach throughout.
Each part of the programme is there to help your body rest, your mind understand what is happening, and your nervous system remember how to settle.
DAILY HEALING RITUALS
Body support, morning and evening.
Gentle daily rituals help your body feel supported while digestion rests.
DAILY HEALING RITUALS
Body support, morning and evening.
Gentle daily rituals help your body feel supported while digestion rests.
- Morning body ritual with warm water and body oiling
- Daily Onsen and massage on Days 1–4
- Vegetable juices and mineral broth throughout the day
- Optional coffee enema with guidance
UNDERSTANDING
Know what your body is doing.
Dieter explains what is happening inside you, so the fast feels clear rather than uncertain.
UNDERSTANDING
Know what your body is doing.
Dieter explains what is happening inside you, so the fast feels clear rather than uncertain.
- Pre-arrival consultation
- Arrival & departure wellness check
- Health education with Dieter
- Autophagy explained
- Personal fasting journal
EMOTIONAL DEPTH
Space to process what accumulates.
Quiet practices and sharing circles give space for what usually gets pushed aside.
EMOTIONAL DEPTH
Space to process what accumulates.
Quiet practices and sharing circles give space for what usually gets pushed aside.
- Sharing circles
- Guided meditation
- Letter to yourself
- Space to simply feel
MOVEMENT & NATURE
Gentle movement. Never pressured.
Movement is adapted to a fasting body, with nature helping you slow down without forcing it.
MOVEMENT & NATURE
Gentle movement. Never pressured.
Movement is adapted to a fasting body, with nature helping you slow down without forcing it.
- Yoga
- Guided valley walk
- Cycling
- Dance & movement
REFEEDING & RETURN
The work continues when you leave.
You receive guidance for the first days at home, so the return is protected, not abrupt.
REFEEDING & RETURN
The work continues when you leave.
You receive guidance for the first days at home, so the return is protected, not abrupt.
- Departure wellness check
- Personal refeeding plan
- Juice & broth for Day 1
- First apple
You lower yourself into the water.
Fasting creates the biological conditions for repair. Repeated exposure to mineral-rich thermal water supports that process by calming the nervous system, relaxing muscles and preparing the body for recovery.
The Onsen building sits beside the Spa. You step inside and the temperature changes immediately: warm, humid, quiet. The eight stations move you through a sequence that takes about thirty minutes and feels considerably longer. By the time you reach the mineral hot spring bath and finally the open-air station, the body has been asked, step by step, to release.
The Onsen session happens each day before your massage, Days 1 to 4. By the time you lie down for fifty minutes of bodywork, your muscles have already begun to settle, because each station prepares you for the next.
Beyond the Onsen building, the resort's natural mineral springs flow through the grounds in open channels, warm water at different temperatures, winding through the landscape. Guests move between them in bathing gear, at whatever pace the day allows. The springs are not a treatment, simply part of the setting, always available. That quality, restorative and requiring nothing, is part of what makes this environment so suited to fasting.
Over five days, this daily immersion in thermal water has a measurable effect: cortisol drops, and muscle tension softens over days rather than hours. The nervous system, repeatedly guided back to a resting state, begins to find that state more easily on its own.
This is not an amenity. It is part of the path back.
You are not getting a new schedule. You are beginning a journey.
Each day has its own quality. This is not a timetable to follow. It is the path most guests move through as the retreat unfolds.
You arrive carrying everything
Check in, meet the others and sit with Dieter for your first wellness check-up. The orientation gives you the shape of the week, and the first Onsen and welcome dinner ease you into the fast.
The week has begun, and you are already somewhere different.
The body begins to let go
Morning ritual, a sharing circle, health education and the afternoon Onsen and massage give the day a clear rhythm.
The clarity that appears is quieter than hunger. The body starts to trust the process rather than being managed from the outside.
Something in you begins to trust the process.
Something shifts
The body settles deeper into rest. Digestion quiets, and a guided meditation and second health education class structure the day without filling it too completely.
The background noise thins. Thoughts arrive with more space around them. Some guests recognise this as exactly what they have been looking for.
The internal weather begins to clear.
You recognise yourself again
A guided valley walk, indoor yoga or gentle movement, cycling and the Onsen and massage shape the clearest day of the retreat.
You feel genuinely lighter, and begin to notice what matters and what no longer deserves your attention. The conversations go deeper without effort.
You begin to remember who you are when no one needs anything from you.
You leave differently
The final morning includes a closing wellness check-up, personalised refeeding guidance and a last sharing circle. By 1pm, you depart with juice and broth for the journey.
Leaving is not an ending. You carry less, know more, and leave with the first apple of refeeding waiting for you at home.
You leave carrying less. You leave knowing more.
Your journey doesn't end on Day 5.
The retreat is only the beginning. We'll help you carry its benefits into everyday life.
BEGIN YOUR JOURNEYGuided by Vietnam Detox together with Alba's wellness team.
Dieter Buchner
Certified Buchinger Fasting Coach
Dieter has been guiding preventive fasting in Vietnam since 2016. He leads the health education classes, wellness check-ups and pre-arrival consultation, bringing calm structure, clear explanation and precise care to the retreat.
Trương Tấn Hoàn
Retreat Manager
Hoàn coordinates the daily flow of the retreat with the Alba team, manages the schedule and makes sure guests are supported from arrival to departure. His presence keeps the experience grounded, organised and personal.
Dang Lam Phuong
Retreat Guest Services and Interpretation
Phương supports both Yên and An Retreat group sessions and interprets between English and Vietnamese so guests can follow the guidance and take part fully. As a Huế native, Phương also brings valuable local knowledge to the Yên Retreat experience.
Tuyền
Retreat Guest Services and Interpretation
Tuyền is a Huế native and trained English teacher who ensures Vietnamese-speaking guests have full access to every part of the programme. A practising student of mindfulness herself, she listens carefully so nothing you want to say is ever lost.
Alba Spa Facilitators
Wellness and Spa Team
Alba's wellness team leads outdoor yoga, hot spring meditations, Tibetan Bowl Sound and guided nature activities.
A small group.One shared journey towards Yên.
Yên is held as a small group experience for a reason: the sharing circles, the wellness check-ups, and the daily rhythm all depend on an intimacy that a larger group would dilute.
Buchinger Fasting Method · 4 Nights (Wed–Sun) · All-Inclusive Retreat Package · Accommodation, wellness programme, all juices & broths, excursions · Alba Wellness Valley, Phong Điền, Huế
Loading available packages…
Current package rates
Choose the available room package that best suits how you plan to join the retreat.
Package names, occupancy, room images and VND prices are refreshed from the current retreat availability.
Prices include accommodation, the full wellness programme, all daily juices and broths, and excursions. Flights and transfers are not included.
Everything held clearly, from arrival to refeeding.
What is included
Education and rhythm
Dieter and the team guide you before, during and after the retreat.
- Pre-arrival wellness consultation
- Arrival and departure check-ups
- Programme orientation on Day 2
- Four health education classes
- Four sharing circles and three guided meditations
Accommodation
Four nights at Alba Wellness Valley, including the welcome dinner before the fast begins.
- 4 nights' accommodation
- Welcome dinner on arrival evening
Daily fasting support
Simple fasting nourishment is provided throughout the fasting days.
- Three fresh vegetable juices per fasting day
- Morning and evening vegetable broth
Onsen and massage
Daily treatments support the fasting process and help the body settle.
- Coffee enema kit and sessions
- Daily 30-minute Onsen, Days 1 to 4
- Daily 50-minute massage or spa treatment, Days 1 to 4
Movement and refeeding
Gentle activities and take-home support help the reset continue after departure.
- Yoga, walking, cycling and movement class
- Hot spring water meditation and Tibetan Bowl Sound
- Fasting guide, retreat journal and welcome bag
- Take-home juice, broth and personalised refeeding guidance
What is not included
- Flights and visa
- Travel insurance
- Airport or city transfers
- Extra spa treatments beyond the programme allocation
- Personal shopping and incidentals
This retreat is for guests ready to step fully out.
- You want a structured, guided reset.
- You have been carrying fatigue, weight or digestive discomfort for longer than you would like.
- You want to understand what is happening in your body.
- You have tried other approaches and want deeper support.
- You value a small group experience that feels personal, contained and human.
- You are willing to arrive with questions and leave with something quieter.
- You want a social or high-activity holiday.
- You are not ready to be fully present and offline for five days.
- You are pregnant, nursing or managing an acute illness.
- You require continuous medical supervision.
- You want to attend while working remotely.
- You expect a resort holiday with wellness additions.
If you are managing a chronic condition or taking regular medication, please mention it when you enquire. Most guests in this situation can complete the retreat safely after Dieter reviews their health profile during the pre-arrival call.
What guests carried home from Yên.
Original handwritten notes and translated reflections from guests who joined the retreat.
Bà B.T. Cư
Yên Retreat guestA wonderful programme!
I felt refreshed and energised in both body and mind.
The knowledge shared during the programme was extremely valuable.
My sincere thanks to Vietnam Detox.
Một chương trình tuyệt vời!
Tôi thấy rất khoẻ khoắn và sảng khoái cả cơ thể và tâm trí.
Các kiến thức được chia sẻ tại chương trình vô cùng quý báu.
Chân thành cảm ơn Vietnam Detox.
Mr. Siro
Yên Retreat guestSometimes even our own family members do not know how to ask about us or care for our health with the same dedication that you have shown over the past few days.
You helped us complete four days of fasting smoothly, while adapting the programme thoughtfully to each person’s physical condition and to guests of different ages. This has given us even more motivation to encourage our parents and loved ones to take part.
What you do is more than a job. It is a lifeline for people who have not known how to care for their health properly for a long time.
With sincere appreciation.
Đôi khi những người thân trong gia đình cũng không biết cách làm sao để hỏi han, chăm sóc sức khoẻ của chúng tôi như cách các bạn tận tâm mấy ngày vừa qua.
Các bạn giúp chúng tôi trải qua 4 ngày tiết thực suôn sẻ và thật linh động dành cho thể trạng từng người trong đoàn đi với mọi lứa tuổi, khiến chúng tôi càng có thêm động lực để động viên bố mẹ mình, những người thân yêu của chúng tôi đến tham gia.
Việc làm của các bạn không phải là công việc, nó là cứu cánh cho những người đang không biết giữ gìn sức khoẻ đúng cách bấy lâu nay.
Trân trọng.
Chị Ng.H. Giang
Yên Retreat guestThis was my second time joining the Vietnam Detox fasting and detox programme.
Thank you to the entire team for persevering through the difficult period of the pandemic and continuing to offer this meaningful programme.
I had five days for myself, gained new knowledge, supported the cleansing of both body and mind, and met wonderful companions along the way.
Dieter and Hoàn were consistently thoughtful, attentive and observant. They listened carefully and supported every participant in completing the programme effectively.
I wish Vietnam Detox continued success and many more high-quality programmes.
Đây là lần thứ 2 mình tham gia khoá Tiết thực & thải độc của Vietnam Detox.
Cảm ơn cả team đã bền bỉ vượt qua giai đoạn khó khăn của dịch bệnh để duy trì khoá học ý nghĩa này.
Tôi đã có 5 ngày dành cho bản thân, thu nạp kiến thức, thải độc thân tâm và có những người bạn đồng hành tuyệt vời.
Dieter và Hoàn luôn chu đáo, chỉnh chu, lắng nghe và quan sát để hỗ trợ các thành viên của lớp hoàn thành khoá học một cách hiệu quả.
Chúc Vietnam Detox ngày có nhiều khoá học chất lượng.
Chị Ng.H. Nguyên
Yên Retreat guestThe quality of the juices was excellent, and the health classes provided valuable knowledge. I was also impressed by the dedication and professionalism of Dieter, Hoàn, Khanh and the entire Vietnam Detox team.
The outdoor activities were enjoyable. Everything was wonderful.
After the programme, I felt healthy and full of energy. The knowledge I gained has made me confident that I can maintain a healthier lifestyle.
I hope to see Vietnam Detox again in the near future.
Chất lượng nước ép tuyệt vời, kiến thức bổ ích trong các lớp sức khoẻ, sự tận tâm và chuyên nghiệp của Dieter, Hoàn, Khanh và cả team Vietnam Detox.
Các hoạt động ngoài trời thú vị, tất cả đều tuyệt vời.
Tôi thấy khoẻ mạnh, tràn đầy năng lượng sau khoá học và tự tin rằng sẽ có một lối sống lành mạnh và khoẻ mạnh bởi những kiến thức học được từ khoá học.
Hẹn sớm gặp lại Vietnam Detox trong tương lai gần.
Chị Ng.V. Anh
Yên Retreat guestUnderstanding health and learning how to care for yourself and your family can bring unexpected benefits.
This is not an ordinary wellness holiday. It is a dedicated period for reviewing your health and restoring it through a structured, evidence-informed approach.
It requires patience, trust and a genuine determination to change.
Hiểu về sức khoẻ để biết cách chăm sóc bản thân và gia đình đem lại lợi ích bất ngờ.
Đây không phải là một kỳ nghỉ dưỡng thông thường mà là một quãng thời gian rà soát lại sức khoẻ, phục hồi nó một cách khoa học.
Nó đòi hỏi sự kiên nhẫn, sự tin tưởng và một quyết tâm thay đổi.
Chị P.P. Nga
Yên Retreat guestThis is a valuable and enjoyable programme. It is deeply relevant to my life and to others living in a hectic society, surrounded by pollution and confused priorities.
Here, we are able to become still again and relearn how to live with health and joy. We gain a broader understanding of food, a different way of thinking about ourselves, greater depth and insight into the remarkable mechanisms of the human body.
I truly enjoyed the programme and am very grateful for it.
Đây là một chương trình bổ ích và thú vị. Nó cần thiết cho đời sống của tôi và các bạn trong xã hội xô bồ, môi trường ô nhiễm và giá trị sống hỗn loạn này.
Ở đây ta sẽ được tĩnh lại, học lại cách sống khoẻ, sống vui. Sẽ được mở mang về thực phẩm, lối tư duy khác về bản thân ta, chiều sâu và các cơ chế kỳ diệu của chính con người chúng ta.
Tôi rất thích và cảm ơn chương trình.
Ms Lê Hạnh
Yên Retreat guestThose who have health have hope, and those who have hope have everything. That is why we should build and protect our health rather than only treating illness.
Ai có sức khoẻ thì có hy vọng và ai có hy vọng thì có tất cả. Vì vậy hãy xây dựng sức khoẻ hơn là điều trị bệnh tật.
Who has health has hope and who has hope has everything.
Direct answers before you reserve.
I don't know if I can fast for five days. What if I can't do it?
Most first-time guests ask this. Buchinger fasting is not a willpower exercise. Juices, broth, mineral water, and a structured daily rhythm help the body transition into fasting, and hunger often becomes quieter from Day 3. Dieter speaks with you before the retreat and guides you throughout, so you are never left to manage the process alone.
Is preventive fasting safe?
Buchinger fasting has clinical origins and is one of the most established forms of preventive fasting. Vietnam Detox has used the method since 2016. Every guest completes a pre-arrival consultation with Dieter plus arrival and departure wellness check-ups. Any health considerations are discussed before you commit.
What do I actually consume during the fasting days?
Three fresh vegetable juices per day, morning and evening vegetable broth, mineral water from the Thanh Tan spring, and herbal teas. Total caloric intake during fasting is very low. The Buchinger method is a modified fast, not a zero-intake fast.
I take regular medication. Is that a problem?
Not necessarily, and not automatically. Dieter will review your specific situation on the pre-arrival call. Some medications are fully compatible with fasting; others require adjustment. We will be honest with you about whether the programme is appropriate before any booking is finalised.
Do I need to have fasted before?
No prior fasting experience is required. The programme is designed to guide guests through the process from the beginning, including the Day 2 orientation, health education sessions throughout, and Dieter's availability for questions at any point. Most guests are first-time fasters.
Can I come alone?
Yes, and many guests do. The small group, sharing circles, Onsen rhythm, and shared fasting experience create a natural sense of connection. Guests often arrive alone and leave feeling part of the group.
What happens when I get home? Will I gain the weight back immediately?
The retreat ends with personalised refeeding guidance: specific instructions for your first three to five days at home, covering what to eat, in what order, and how to reintroduce foods without disrupting what the fast began. You will leave with take-home glass bottles of juice and broth to support the transition. The apple you take home is your ceremonial first food, to be eaten on Monday morning, once you are back in your own space and ready.
Some guests choose to continue their fast at home for a few additional days. Vietnam Detox supports this remotely and will advise on when and how to break the fast when you are ready.
Ready to return to Yên?
If you are ready, reserve your spot now. If you are still unsure, you can speak with Dieter first and ask what you need to know before deciding.
Whenever you're ready, choose the next step that feels right for you.